Niger

Lord Alton of Liverpool: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether the Department for International Development is involved in any projects in Niger which aim to combat the root causes of descent-based slavery.

Baroness Amos: Niger was included in the DfID-supported work with Anti-Slavery International aimed at eradicating child domestic servitude and trafficking by establishing a network of non-government organisations in six countries in west Africa to combat abusive employment and cross-border recruitment of young children as domestic workers. The DfID provided £70,000. The project was completed in 2003.
	The DfID is working closely with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and non-governmental organisations to tackle descent-based slavery and other forced labour issues elsewhere in west Africa. Through a £15 million partnership framework agreement with the ILO, the DfID is funding a $1.9 million programme (approved in 2003) to combat forced labour and trafficking in Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal and Togo.
	Although the DfID does not have a direct assistance programme with Niger, as part of efforts to strengthen UK/France co-operation on development issues in Africa, DfID has agreed to provide an initial £7 million, through the French development programme, in support of Niger's basic education policy, with particular emphasis on getting more girls into primary education.

House of Lords: Joint Committee on Conventions

Lord Campbell of Alloway: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	In connection with the proposed Joint Committee on the Conventions of the House of Lords:
	(a) who will propose the terms of reference; and
	(b) whether these will extend to the powers and membership of the House.

Lord Falconer of Thoroton: The terms of reference for Joint Committees are normally proposed by the Government and discussed through the usual channels in both Houses, before being put first to one House and then to the other for agreement. I would expect this procedure to apply in the case of the proposed Joint Committee referred to.

Mujahadin-e-Khalk

Lord Hylton: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How many representations they have received asking for the Mujahadin-e-Khalk (PMOI) to be removed from the list of proscribed terrorist organisations; and who made these representations.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: As a matter of policy, the Government do not comment on decisions about whether to proscribe or de-proscribe organisations. The list of proscribed organisations is kept under review.

Homicide

Lord Maginnis of Drumglass: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What has been the comparative murder rate for the period 2000–04 for the cities of:
	(a) Belfast;
	(b) Birmingham;
	(c) Cardiff;
	(d) Glasgow;
	(e) Liverpool;
	(f) London; and
	(g) Manchester.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: Information on homicide in selected cities was published in Home Office Statistical Bulletin number 02/05, Crime in England and Wales 2003/2004: Supplementary Volume 1: Homicide and Gun Crime. Figures can be provided only for Belfast and London.

Zimbabwe: Asylum Seekers

Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What changes they will make in the instructions to immigration officers on the treatment of Zimbabwean asylum seekers, in the light of the decisions in the appeals numbered AS/14071/2004, HX/55469/2003 and AS/15311/2004.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: The three cases referred to were heard together by the Immigration Appeal Tribunal on 15 February 2005. The outcomes were notified in a country guidance determination on 11 May 2005. Current Home Office policy on asylum seekers from Zimbabwe is largely in line with this determination and we do not therefore anticipate that any major change to the instructions will be necessary. Guidance for staff involved in asylum decision-making on the treatment of Zimbabwean asylum claims is currently being reviewed and we expect to publish a new operational guidance note on Zimbabwe in June.

Parish Councils

Lord Beaumont of Whitley: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	When they intend to extend the right to establish parish councils to communities in London.

Baroness Andrews: The Government published the discussion document Citizen Engagement and Public Services: Why Neighbourhoods Matter on 31 January 2005. This indicated the Government's intention to seek to remove the existing barrier on urban parishes in London. Our manifesto makes clear our intention to extend the right to establish parish councils to London communities.

London Boroughs: Building of Affordable Homes

Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How many affordable homes were built under Section 106 agreements or otherwise by each of London boroughs in each of the years 1997–98 to 2004–05 respectively.

Baroness Andrews: From 1998–99 to 2004–05 there were 224 affordable dwellings built for rent by London boroughs: Waltham Forest built 159, Hillingdon built 54, Wandsworth built six and Islington built five. The remaining boroughs did not build any local authority dwellings in this time period.
	The majority of affordable homes are delivered by registered social landlords. The numbers of affordable homes delivered in each London borough are tabled below for the years 1998–99 to 2004–05.
	
		
			  1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 
			 Barking and Dagenham 107 59 68 50 28 22 154 
			 Barnet 239 89 116 138 99 132 174 
			 Bexley 38 72 45 26 150 68 91 
			 Brent 272 319 359 322 224 243 315 
			 Bromley 183 268 124 146 150 165 336 
			 City of London 0 0 0 4 0 8 30 
			 Croydon 159 237 154 350 230 125 274 
			 Ealing 293 234 148 156 179 244 402 
			 Enfield 249 111 232 431 293 256 369 
			 Greenwich 314 202 231 327 149 586 458 
			 Hackney 587 395 306 257 373 482 359 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 295 116 177 149 103 488 376 
			 Haringey 325 229 265 286 167 349 272 
			 Harrow 88 64 103 123 121 111 141 
			 Havering 53 57 20 197 45 56 126 
			 Hillingdon 258 123 253 185 113 168 154 
			 Hounslow 257 69 40 187 118 327 165 
			 Islington 266 180 214 152 262 315 261 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 123 214 61 72 112 236 79 
			 Kingston upon Thames 34 48 118 71 43 55 195 
			 Lambeth 265 243 134 244 272 378 341 
			 Lewisham 397 177 261 229 234 303 504 
			 Merton 97 216 57 76 78 62 146 
			 Newham 413 325 223 405 327 304 426 
			 Redbridge 54 186 101 199 128 161 274 
			 Richmond upon Thames 40 77 54 57 15 109 192 
			 Southwark 224 181 258 223 250 340 639 
			 Sutton 48 127 212 153 196 145 349 
			 Tower Hamlets 332 377 205 296 404 336 153 
			 Waltham Forest 324 181 241 224 196 115 162 
			 Wandsworth 175 181 94 130 116 108 413 
			 Westminster 207 219 394 349 180 210 280 
		
	
	Source: Housing Corporation.
	(Includes new build dwellings, acquisitions and refurbishments)
	The numbers include new build dwellings, acquisitions and refurbishments through the approved development programme (ADP) including key worker homes in 2004–05.
	Figures exclude the Transitional Local Authority Social Housing Grant (TLASHG), the Starter Homes Initiative (not delivered through the Approved Development Programme) and S106 agreements where there was no housing corporation funding.

Housing

Lord Marlesford: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How many new houses were built in the United Kingdom in each of the past 15 years.

Baroness Andrews: The number of house building completions in the UK in each of the fifteen years to 2003 are tabled below.
	
		
			 Year Number 
			 1989 221 
			 1990 203 
			 1991 192 
			 1992 179 
			 1993 186 
			 1994 193 
			 1995 200 
			 1996 189 
			 1997 191 
			 1998 180 
			 1999 182 
			 2000 178 
			 2001 175 
			 2002 183 
			 2003 190 
		
	
	Figures in thousands
	Information on annual house building completions figures in the UK is available from the Housing Statistics section on the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's Internet site. www.odpm.gov.uk/stellent/groups/odpm–housing/documents/page/odpm–house–604055.xls.
	(Housing—Housing Statistics—Live Tables—Housebuilding—Table no 241).

Housing

Lord Marlesford: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	By what criteria they define affordable housing.

Baroness Andrews: The Government define affordable housing as including social-rented housing and other forms of sub-market housing (known as intermediate housing). Social-rented housing is housing at social rents (i.e. subject to the rent restructuring regime) and accessed via local authority or RSL housing registers. Other forms of sub-market housing include forms of low-cost home ownership such as shared ownership and Homebuy and housing available at intermediate rents (above social rent but below market rent). Affordable housing can generally be accessed only by existing social housing tenants or people on waiting lists, or others groups specifically identified, such as key workers. It is typically in receipt of public subsidy, but can also be provided by other means; for example, through "Section 106" planning agreements.
	In addition, planning policy guidance note 3: housing (PPG3) requires a local planning authority to define what it considers to be affordable in its areas in terms of the relationship between local income levels and house prices or rents for different types of households. This is used in considering planning applications for both market and sub-market housing.

European Union Directive 2003/35/EC

Lord Berkeley: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How they propose to transpose European Union Directive 2003/35/EC into United Kingdom law; and when they propose to do this.

Baroness Andrews: Directive 2003/35/EC, which amends Directive 85/337/EEC dealing with environmental impact assessment and Directive 96/61/EC on pollution prevention and control, will be transposed by a number of legislative instruments. Proposals for transposing the amendments to Directive 85/337/EC, as far as projects falling within the planning system in England are concerned, are set out in a consultation document published by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister on 14 March, and the directive will be implemented, in the light of comments received, as soon as possible after the consultation period ends on 6 June. There will be separate legislative instruments to transpose the amendments to that directive for projects falling outside the planning system, and for projects in Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and Gibraltar. Regulations to transpose the amendments to Directive 96/61/EC via the Pollution Prevention and Control Regulations 2000 (England and Wales), and separate regulations for Northern Ireland, Scotland and Gibraltar, are expected to come into force on 25 June 2005. Further regulations to transpose the amendments to that directive via the Offshore Combustion Installations (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Regulations 2001 will come into force later this year.

Wales: Governance

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	On what date the White Paper on the powers of the government of Wales will be published.

Lord Evans of Temple Guiting: Later this month.

Wales: Governance

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	When the text of the proposed Bill concerning changes to the powers of the National Assembly for Wales will be available.

Lord Evans of Temple Guiting: The Government intend to introduce into Parliament a Bill relating to the Welsh devolution settlement during the present Session.